14 DAY TRIAL // The Opera web browser will soon get a major new release that will celebrate 50 releases of the Chromium-based browser for desktops, including GNU/Linux, macOS, and Microsoft Windows operating systems.
Opera 50 is currently in beta stages of development, and the latest updated arrived today with the revamped VPN (Virtual Private Network) service that was previously implemented in an Opera 51 Developer build. The built-in, no-log browser VPN service offered by Opera just got a facelift and some new functionality.
The first thing users will notice when they'll update to Opera 50 is that the VPN is no longer country-based, but region-based. This means that the current Canada, United States, Germany, Netherlands, and Singapore VPNs will be replaced with Europe, Americas, and Asia.
"The colocation of the browser VPN service to our data centers is expected to give increased performance, scalability and balancing capabilities, while keeping it a free and no-log service," said Andrzej Czarnecki, Product Manager at Opera Software, in today's announcement.
The VPN service will be moved to Opera's own data centers
Under the hood, the VPN service will no longer be hosted by SurfEasy LLC, which was recently acquired by Symantec, as Opera Software plans to move it to its own data centers, which provides one of the world's highest capacity super-computer clusters already hosting the compressing engine for Opera Mini for Android and iOS.
This move shouldn't worry Opera users as Opera Software promises not only to keep the built-in VPN service free and without logging, but also to increase its overall performance. Another change implemented in the browser's VPN service is the way search works with various search engines.
As you know, when using a VPN from the different country than yours, chances are you'll get search results from popular search engines based on the IP address of the VPN. To address this issue, Opera 50 will come with a new "local search" feature that'll bypass the VPN and reveal your real IP address to the search engine.
Of course, when you click a link on the search results, the VPN will be enabled automatically again. If that's not OK with you, you can always rely on the Private Mode. The latest Opera 50 Beta release is now based on Chromium 63.0.3239.5, and can be downloaded for GNU/Linux, macOS, and Microsoft Windows systems.
